Truly Madly Deeply
by emptysouls
Summary: Elena G. joins the police squad, her unexpected journey turning into a ride of emotions as she gets to meet and work with Mr. Damon Salvatore, a well known cop.
1. Chapter 1

"It was about time you'd joined our team, Elena!" Bonnie added with a sign of satisfaction visible on her face.

"Yes!" Caroline agreed. "I feel like after all the persuasion and infinite hours, we have finally convinced you."

"Yes Care, you can be a hell of an annoying friend when you want to." I laughed at my friend's pout.

But indeed, they did it. After many hours of bubbling about how we were all meant to work together, about how talented I was and how much the NYPD could change my life, be that something that I was waiting for, I applied for the job and they immediately contacted me. And I guess I am happy with my choice. Working with the amazing investigators, that Tyler and Matt are in the field, is just another joy because I have known the two of them since I can remember. Bonnie has been my best friend since high school and I simply can't make it through the day without her. Her medical abilities are just the icing on the cake and I couldn't be happier to work with a greater forensic scientist. And then there is Caroline, the life of everything that moves around us, she is just like a ray of light through out our 'moping around' times and never-ending dramas. She is working in the office, providing us information so that we can get to know the victim better or search different areas of the investigation. As I said before, we're just one big family. However, the police officer responsible for our actions as a police squad is Mr. Damon Salvatore. I haven't had the chance or opportunity to meet the person that my friends cannot stop bragging about. They all seem to look up to him but daily complain about his cockiness and 'lack of humanity', as they called it several times. I am really curious and intrigued by his presence and I haven't even met the guy yet. I guess that I will tomorrow (finally). For now I am just enjoying the last night of freedom, of no worries and sleepless nights, no cases to crack and no guilt that is needed to be felt. It's just me and them, like it has always been.

"To Elena, our new cop and working buddy!" Matt reaches his shot of tequila in the air, marking a toast. The others whistle and the girls giggle as we all say "Cheers!" and drink the shot of tequila from one gasp.

"Ready for tomorrow?" Tyler asks, putting his hand over Care's shoulders. The two of them have been together since our graduation day. Bonnie and I have always joked about how lonely Caroline and her annoyingly cute boyfriend make us feel. I guess that after all we felt a little jealousy as the blonde was always getting the most of the boys' attention and she somehow managed to end up with the good one. That jealousy was though topped with tons of happiness, good thoughts and genuine lovingness.

"Definitely. I can't wait for us to get the next case cracked and arrest the first bad guy that comes in our sight." I say proudly, picturing the victorious moment.

"Slow down, Gilbert! You may fool the others and they might just take you as a bad girl." Bonnie laughed. "You're just a kitten, chill your excitement woman."

"Easy there, Benett. I know that even you're afraid of me." I made a 'meow' sound that sounded more like an aggressive cat, trying to mark her territory.

"It's all lies, E."

"Remember that one time when that high school stalker of yours was following you on your way to class? Because I remember the fear that was visible in your voice. Who did you call that day? Your badass friend, that's right. You called me, and it turned out that the poor guy was just heading out of the building. Yep, and I'm still the kitten." I laugh at Bonnie, who is carefully eyeing me.

Everybody started laughing along with me. It was just one of those nights spent at the Grill (our favorite local bar which was, unlike the other New York bars, quiet and easygoing), in the dim of the light, gathering reminiscences of our early days. My mind couldn't help but drift to _tomorrow_.

"Oh shit." I heard Matt mutter under his breath. I looked at his expression with interest as I saw his face falling from a happy mood to a serious and thoughtful look. He then, to my surprise, pulled the empty glasses of tequila further on the table, away from him. I followed his breath that lead me to the other's faces. Their faces seemed to take a more serious look as they aimed Matt's reason of sudden weirdness and stiffness.

"Look who has just made an appearance." Pointed Bonnie as if I was not confused enough.

I looked at the door which was now closing, the atmosphere of the bar suddenly growing quieter, everybody's eyes scanning a certain silhouette.

* * *

**AN: New storyyyy! I'm so happy I came up with it and I hope that you will enjoy it as much as I do. I'm gonna update it _every Monday _so see you then. **


	2. Chapter 2

_I looked at the door which was now closing, the atmosphere of the bar suddenly growing quieter, everybody's eyes scanning a certain silhouette._

My eyes grew wide as I saw the most perfect perfect human being (wait, was he even human?). His blue eyes lit up my world as the moments flew by. His lips were perfectly shaped into a smirk that made him seem a lot more confident than he probably was. God, if I only let my mind wonder and imagine what he could do with those lips, I would probably be long lost and gone. My eyes travelled down to his perfect torso... and his skin. His skin seemed so soft, only the thought of his touch made me feel butterflies in my belly and goosebumps on my skin. His raven messy hair gave him a mysterious look that drove me a little bit too far over the edge. I blushed at my thoughts as he ordered a drink.

"Bourbon." I read on his lips as he perfectly popped out every letter of the word. I was mesmerized and intrigued by his presence.

"Elena, meet Damon Salvatore." Tyler said with a strangely calm voice.

My jaw dropped. I took my words back as soon as I reality synced back in. I mentally cursed myself for having those kinds of thoughts. He was my boss and tomorrow was my first day, making a complete fool out of myself wouldn't even stand as an option. I continued watching him with guilt. If he only knew...

"He's quite a charmer, isn't he?" Caroline winked in my direction as she giggled. The blonde knew me far too well. I once again looked at him as he chatted with Jason, the owner of the bar. He seemed quite bored and I was now surely looking forward to tomorrow. Something about him made me want to get to know the guy better, to memorize all of his precious facial expressions (because believe me, he had many), to read him like an open book, to make him smile, to influence his being, I wanted his voice to resonate down to my toes and travel through my body. He had something that made me endlessly want to push him over the edge, tease him, understand the darkest corners of his mind and print my signature all over his heart.

I shook my head as I was caught in my thoughts once again by Bonnie's judging eyes. I felt exposed. Of course it was just a silly thought, she couldn't actually read my mind but in that moment it surely felt like that.

"Ready to go, Elena?" Matt asked.

"Yes." I said as I stood up.

"Bye Sir." I heard Caroline say as we passed by Damon (if I was even allowed to call him like that?!).

"Heading home already?"

Shivers ran along my spine as I heard his strong, masculine and also firm voice. For a second he scanned my face and I couldn't help but wonder what he thought in that moment. I was kind of disappointed when none of my friends introduced me to my new boss but I shook it off as I heard Care responding to his question.

"We don't want to be late tomorrow." She laughed as Damon smirked once again.

I can't help but wonder what _tomorrow_ brings.

* * *

**AN:New chapter! See you _next Monday_ guys! Hope you liked it. **


	3. Chapter 3

**AN: I know this is late but here it is. My iMac decided not to connect to internet and I had to restore my computer. I lost all of the documents from it including this chapter. It was pretty hard to write it for the second time so it took a little while. For those who are saying that the chapters are too short, they will get longer and longer. Just wait and see. Thank you for all the nice reviews though!**

The next morning I got woken up by the sound of my alarm beeping. I lazily turned it off and just as I was about to go to the bathroom my phone started buzzing.

"Elena Gilbert, where are you?" If I wasn't fully awake by then, Caroline's bossy voice definitely woke up all of my senses.

"Home." I was about to ask her why she had to call me at such an early hour but her voice interrupted my thoughts from gathering.

"For God's sake, a man was murdered Elena! You are supposed to be here!"

My eyes grew wide at her statement. "Where is here?"

"Peretz Square."

By the time she wanted to add something I hang up and tied my hair in a messy bun. I dialed a number and called a cab. I grabbed a T-shirt from the counter and my favorite pair of jeans. I poured my coffee in a plastic glass, put on my new heels and rushed towards the cab that was waiting for me outside. I wanted so badly not to be late. It was my first day after all. As soon as the cab arrived, I rushed towards a familiar blonde figure.

"I'm sorry I'm late Care but you seriously have to cut me some slack. I didn't check my messages and -"

"Miss Gilbert, I suppose. Nice of you to join us." A firm voice interrupted my bubbling. I became aware of the shivers that ran down my spine. I knew exactly who was standing behind me.

"Elena Gilbert." I said as I turned towards the blue-eyed beauty. I studied his smirk once again. My eyes ran down from his jaw to his perfect toned body. The police officer costume made him look even more imposing and intimidating.

"Damon, mister Salvatore for you."

I rolled my eyes. I totally understood all of my friends' reactions and comments and I had just met the guy.

"What do we have here?" the masculine voice asked as Matt appeared in my sight.

"Josh Hamming, 25, found dead here by a group of tourists. They are interrogated right as we speak by Tyler."

"What about you, Judgy?"

"Judgy?" I asked confused but Damon - wait, Mr. Salvatore didn't even bother to respond and I saw Bonnie rolling her eyes.

"I would estimate the time of death at around 9 pm - 9:30. There are no signs of struggling or robbery. No sexual harassment so he must have went here without most of his clothes by himself which makes it kind of strange. I am sure that we will find the cause of death as soon as I do an autopsy."

As soon as I heard her words I knew what my next question would be.

"What about his address? He must have lived somewhere around this corner. He looks quite comfortable dressed. He could have wanted to go to sleep before something or more likely someone, caught his attention."

Everybody looked at me with wide eyes. What did I do wrong now?

"Answer her Bonnie." Damon's voice hurried her.

Bonnie snapped out of her amazed look as she answered my question. "We have Tyler and Caroline checking it right now. I will announce you Mr. Salvatore and you too 'Lena as soon as I get the address."

I smiled at her and headed towards the police car that was near the crime scene. I guessed it was ours. I felt a velvet touch tinkering my skin and I stopped. My eyes met the blue ones and I was immediately in a trance, not only by his eyes but also his grip on me made our first contact kind of harsh and I couldn't complain about it. I could feel every corner of his left hand mixed with my skin.

"Asking questions, that is usually my job around here." He smirked at me for what seemed like the hundredth time, it was almost like he was reading my thoughts.

A light flickered in my head. That was why everybody was looking at me so amazed. Good job Elena. You are already getting on people's nerves. And especially your boss! Smooth move! I was about to mentally curse myself once again but his voice surrounded me.

"Get in my car Gilbert. We're going over to my place."

"What?" My eyes grew wide as I sat in the passenger seat near HIM.

"We're going to the office. That's how I call it. Where did you think we were going, silly?"

His smirk grew even wider (if that was possible) when he saw the unfamiliar shade of red spreading over my cheeks.

"Didn't you read the policy? Bad things happen to naughty police officers."

I rolled my eyes as he laughed at his playful remark.

"Don't get your hopes up though." I said with a 'superior' air.

"Ouch, feisty. I like it."

My phone buzzed.

"Elena, where are you?"

"Damon's car." I replied annoyed. My best friend tended to be overprotective all the time.

"Are you insane? Nobody has ever been there."

"Care, you tend to analyze things too much." I rolled my eyes even though she couldn't see me.

"No Elena. You gotta listen to me. You need to set your boundaries. We want you to work here for a long period. I-" by that time she was screaming. Damon put his hand over mine and grabbed the phone with a tender movement.

"I can hear you Blondie, you know?"

I couldn't focus on Damon's conversation and it definitely wasn't the time to yell at him for interrupting mine. My heart was still beating like a subway train. Caroline was right. What was I getting myself into?


	4. Chapter 4

**AN: The reviews mean so much, thank you guys! This is why this chapter is up earlier. You got me motivated. By the way, the story between the two lines is from Damon's perspective, hope it is not that confusing.  
**

"Salvatore." I heard Damon's clear voice as he answered his cellphone.

I studied his facial expression trying to decide by myself if the situation was good or bad but I had no idea of what was happening.

"Wait, I'll put you on speaker so that little Miss Gilbert over here can hear you too."

I smiled thankfully and immediately recognized Bonnie's voice beaming through the speakers of Damon's phone.

"I did a really quick check and found out what killed our guy. Two shots in the left side of his head."

"Ouch. Until later then Judgy. Call us if you find something new."

"What is it with you and your cocky attitude?" I asked bravely as I searched his blue eyes.

"I almost feel offended Elena." He said as our eyes finally met though a brief contact.

"You did not answer the question."

"I'd love to chat more with you my dear, but duty calls. We're here!"

I got out of the car and followed Damon. It turned out that every police squad had a personal office. A very big one I might add. I didn't have enough time to study the place that would be so familiar in a couple of months. I saw Tyler, Matt and Caroline gathered in one corner. They seemed to have an intense conversation.

"What's up guys?" I said as I approached them. I noticed, in the corner of my eyes, that Damon had left the room. He opened the door of what seemed to be his office with slow movements. I could see that he was lost in his thoughts. However, Tyler interrupted mine.

"We found out our victim's address and went to his apartment. Nothing seemed wrong there. Everything was right at his place. He really did leave his apartment on his own will. We talked to all of his neighbors and they mentioned hearing a sharp and loud noise at around 9:10."

"That is close to the time of death. That must have been why he went out, to check out what was going on." I added a quick remark as I caught up with everything they have gathered in such a short amount of time.

"I also found more about the victim. Josh has no close relatives in town. What we didn't know about him was that he was a police officer. We could not find his gun or badge anywhere so it does not really make sense."

I gasped as the fresh information gave me a lot to think about.

* * *

I entered my office and started going through some files. They were actually not just some files, they were Elena Gilbert's files. She had something that got me intrigued, I wanted to know her story. She did not seem the bad police officer type, she didn't seem to have a rough hidden past like the most of us did. She was just another simple teenager from my point of view.

I grabbed her file and began reading.

Elena Gilbert, 24. Her father Grayson Gilbert was a well-known cop from New York. Her mother, Miranda Gilbert, was also a prestigious doctor. I frowned at the next few lines that were written with sharp letters - _death caused by a car accident_. I suddenly felt a little sympathy for the girl who seemed to be unbroken. She surely must have gone through a lot. I could only imagine her tiny figure being held by Bonnie or Caroline (they seemed to be really close) while breaking down. I shook my head and continued reading. _Brother, Jeremy Gilbert, killed. **UNSOLVED**_** MURDER**. The words cut me sharp like a knife as soon as I realized what her story was. Alone, seeking justice, trying to pull a brave face and help the other ones find the peace that she was unfortunate not to find. I found myself opening Jeremy's file and going through all of the details of his murder. Everything seemed planned out, it actually seemed amazingly well planned since there was barely any evidence regarding the case. The motive of his murder was also obviously missing too. He seemed like the nice, "stay out of trouble" type kid. I felt sorry for him even though I had no idea of his existence until a couple of minutes before.

I looked at the clock and realized that it was already 10 pm. I must have stayed a lot in the office. I cursed myself under my breath as it hit me - everybody was home by this late hour. I missed my chance to get updated on the new case.

* * *

I was frowning. What was I missing? Something was not falling into place. There was no evidence pointing to who the killer might have been and I began feeling frustrated. I felt exhausted. I ran my hands through my hair in exasperation. That was when I heard a noise followed by some steps.

"You're still here?" I heard a surprised Damon questioning my presence at that hour in the office.

"Got caught up in the case."

I looked in his eyes that I expected to be filled with amusement when they were in fact full of understatement and acceptance.

"First case, right? I remember how it felt. I was so excited to follow leads and catch the first criminal. I quickly became annoyed and bothered by the lack of progress and evidence that was added. It was such a journey. It turned out that the victim was killed by his love interest's wife. Did not expect at all to deal with homosexual persons in those circumstances. I am sure that we can slowly work it out. What did you figure out?"

I was surprised when he finished his little story. Had Damon Salvatore just opened up to someone, to me? I shook it off as I gathered all my thoughts on the answer to his question.

"The guy we found dead, Josh Hamming was a police officer. I was surprised that neither one of you known him. He was not married and had no family who lived near-by, he was all by himself. That night, at 9:10 pm, as the neighbors reported, a loud noise cut the settling silence. From what I understood from their descriptions, it seemed to be a gunshot. He rushed out, in his nightwear. He was a smart cop, from what his colleagues said, so there was no way he got there without a gun even though one was not found at the murder scene."

"Relax, Elena. You need to let loose a little. There's time for all that tomorrow. You have been working hard today, you deserve some rest."

Damon's calm voice triggered off something inside of me. He did not understand. This case could not end up unsolved. In fact, none of the cases could end up like that, it wasn't fair. With every unsolved case a family was eternally doomed to seek peace, without finding it. It wasn't right how an innocent life was brutally, definitively taken away by a murderous, guilty and beastly presence that got to see tomorrow without any care in the world. That was not how things worked.  
By the time I wanted to say something I found myself dragged out by Damon who had a tight grip on my hand.

"Where are we going?" I asked knowing that there was no point in arguing with Damon Salvatore.

"The Grill." He said simply as he drove me there.

I kept asking questions but the road was quiet due to his choice of completely ignoring my mean remarks or my undergoing protests. I wondered what was going through his mind. He pulled in the parking lot and I silently got out. We made our way through the little crowd of drunk people and took our seats in front of the bar. Damon ordered a few shots mumbling something about me having fun but I could not notice the weirdness of the fact that I was drinking with my boss at a late hour. Could I get in trouble for that?

A few more hours later.. and shots, Damon and I were more than willingly to talk. He told me about his family who was in Italy away from the mess that New York was and enumerated a few of the Italian dishes that he could cook with his eyes closed. I also got to know that his little brother, Stefan, was killed when he was around 10. Even though they weren't in the best kind of relationships I could see that he deeply cared for him and was genuinely affected by his sudden death. He also turned the sad story into a funny one when he told me that his little brother was one of the first cases that he has ever worked on and that he had such a huge smirk when he caught the bastard murderer that he could not even frown for a few days after let alone mimic other facial expressions. Leave it to Damon to make you laugh while he is talking about his brother's death. I then got to know his jerk side once again when he told me about the womanizer he used to be in high school. That did not surprise me anyways, after all he had the looks. We continued with a few stories about his mom, a woman that he deeply admired, and his father. I also learned that Damon has been trying to make him proud for all these years but his father could not be moved to the point he refused to even congratulate him the day he got promoted. For some reason he really cared for his approval and continued seeking affection due to the lack of it during his young years. I already hated the man and I didn't even know him.

I also got lost in those blue eyes and told him a few things about my childhood, letting out a few happy memories. He also got to know how close I actually was to all of my friends, the ones who have always been there, and where all of our relationships stood. It was nice to talk to someone like that and in that moment I swear I felt like I had no care in the world.

That was when, in the faint dim, I got to know the real Damon Salvatore. The one my friends knew nothing about, the one who cared and loved more than most of the people were even capable to and I was secretly admiring him for it. I realized that his cockiness and playful remarks were nothing but a way of pushing people away, in order not to make himself care about them and then inevitably get hurt. In just a few hours I discovered the many layers of the difficult officer whose past was worth being written in a book that I was sure would be bound to end up as a best-seller. And that man, right there, he made me want to live and gain the passion that was buried inside of me so many years ago all over again.


End file.
